Last of Boston bombing victims out of hospital, back in California

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Southern California man who almost didn’t survive the Boston Marathon bombing has returned home after five months of recovery and rehabilitation.

The Torrance Daily Breeze reports (http://bit.ly/1fHgd1Y) 65-year-old John Odom and his wife Karen were greeted by a throng of well-wishers at a reception in El Segundo Friday.

“We were thinking about what it was going to be like when we got home,” he said. “It’s exactly what we thought it would be.”

John Odom was the last of the April 15 bombing victims to go home.

He and his wife, who went to the marathon to watch their daughter run in the event, were standing near the finish line when the first of two bombs went off. Both were thrown to the ground, but only John got hit by shrapnel that severed arteries in both his legs.

He lost a tremendous amount of blood and lay unconscious and in critical condition for nearly three weeks.

He underwent 11 operations and spent months learning to walk again. While he wears a brace and has no feeling below the knee in his left leg, Odom is up and moving. He will continue outpatient therapy now that he’s home in Torrance.

He planned to return to work part-time on Monday, a day after he and his wife celebrate their 46th wedding anniversary.